Chapter 9

The next morning was bright and sunny, yet that did not stop any of the Heaps from sleeping in to a very late hour. The events from the previous evening had literally exhausted them and a nice snooze was very welcome. When Silas Heap awoke, the first thing he wondered was whether Sarah had become a ghost. The second thing on his mind was Marcia. Had she recovered from yesterday's depression? He could remember her self-doubt and distress, all the vices she had attributed to herself and her desperate sobbing and crying. He had never imagined that there could be such a sensitive side to her. Obviously there was more to Marcia than met the eye.

Silas dragged himself out of his duvet and into the adjoining bathroom. His double-bed had seemed strangely empty, without Sarah sleeping besides him and the man was eager to be gone.

After a very rapid wash, he was on a steady pace to the Royal Hospital to see whether Sarah had transformed into a ghost yet. Silas wasn't sure what he would tell his deceased wife when he saw her but he knew that he owed her an explanation. There was no-way a respectable man would go on into pretences about still loving his wife even though she was now dead, especially if they also intended to court someone else. No, Sarah needed to understand, plus he was aware that the one he loved would never accept him unless he had made proper amends. It really was a shame, he thought, that Sarah was not familiar with that enchanting girl that had occupied his heart for so long…

The first thing Silas noticed when he walked in was Sarah, leaning on the bleached walls, her ghostly frame not fully developed yet and lacking in capacity. She smiled at him affectionately but, he could tell there was no romantic love in her eyes. In a way, he was relieved because at least he wouldn't break her heart. On the other hand, he felt slightly confused for; would that mean his old wife was also in love with someone else? That thought made Silas jealous, even though he knew it was what he was doing, he couldn't help feeling betrayed.

"Silas, dear! Did you sleep well?" inquired Sarah, her translucent green eyes filled with warmth.

"Erm…yes…Look Sarah I need to talk to you about something."

"Yes, it's about the fact that you finally noticed you weren't in love with me. I don't think I was ever interested in you romantically. Well I was for the first ten years that we were together but then, I began to understand there was something not right between us. And slowly, I drifted apart from you, while you fell in love with someone else. Didn't you?"

There was no blame in her voice, in fact, it was almost teasing.

"Well…yes I did but…"

"I think I have my suspicions on who it is…"

"I promise you just don't know her!!!"

Septimus was walking around without a particular destination. He had once read in a book that anger and sadness could be helped through physical activity. He wasn't sure if walking counted as a sport but that was the only thing he could do. He felt bad about his mother dying and, although he knew he could go and talk to her ghost self, he just wasn't ready for that yet. Besides, his father would most certainly want to be alone with Sarah for at least an hour or two…

Meanwhile, Marcia was, unconsciously doing the same as her apprentice. However, her mind was a blur of much more sombre things than Septimus', she hoped, would ever be. Firstly, there was the embarrassment of her breakdown yesterday, right in front of Silas. She had confessed all she really considered herself to be, something she had never told anyone. Then, she had allowed herself to get her hopes up when he had reassured her and contradicted all she had just mentioned about her personality – which was an interesting way to deal with the situation as they had not seen much of each other in the last 20 years except in the Marram Marshes, where they had spent the whole time there in constant bickering. The young wizard had even managed to persuade herself that there had been love in the "Marcia? Marcia! Oh Marcia!" Silas had said when he had entered her rooms and what she had thought was a dream. To top it all, Marcia realised that Silas was completely over her. He probably assumed she was heartless and not worth his time and had fallen in love with someone else. Not that she could blame him. She had never spared anytime in him so, why should things be any different now?

Suddenly, she spotted Septimus in the distance and her emotions soared. Now, he may be willing to continue his apprenticeship and, as nothing had officially been cancelled, she was sure there would be no complications. As she drew nearer, she noticed that the young boy was kicking a stone around in what seemed an upset manner. She instantly felt very selfish for not remembering that his mother having just died, Septimus was surely devastated. An instinct in Marcia's brain told her that she was now the only motherly presence left for him. A notion which she quickly pushed away as ridiculous yet, not before it had added a slightly fuzzier touch in the way she saw her apprentice.

"Septimus! Septimus!" she called, rushing forward to meet him.

He looked up in surprise.

"Oh Marcia, hi!" he answered, a grin spreading on his face.

"Hello! How are you?" she asked. As soon as the words were out, she realised her mistake which may lead the boy to believe that she didn't know the news – or knew them but did not care in the least.

"Well," she hastily added, "I'm sure times have been better for you but…"

"Yeah…they have but, I suppose I've been worst…I just…" he trailed off.

Marcia was surprised, was he so untouched by what had happened?

"Oh yea Marcia! I wanted to tell you about the apprenticeship, I'm so so sorry. I really loved having you as a tutor. It was wonderful! But I…I would feel kind of bad, after what happened, to go against my mother's will. I'm really sorry! I hope you're not angry!"

The woman was shocked. It was obvious that Septimus hadn't liked being her apprentice since she had just witnessed that he remained unaffected by his mother's death. This was just an excuse, a polite way of putting things.

"No of course I don't mind Septimus! It's a very mature decision you are making which I respect greatly!" Marcia said slowly, playing along. She studied the boy's face, searching for guilt or any trace that he had lied; yet found nothing but sorrow, confusion and disbelief at what he was doing.

"Oh my goodness. I can't believe this is happening. I mean, I loved being your apprentice, but…my mother—" he choked back a sob, his eyes filling with tears. The wizard abruptly understood that Septimus hadn't been lying. And he had been affected by his the terrible event that had just taken place. Terribly affected. He had just not wanted to reveal his emotions. Oh please, she silently prayed, make it that I didn't teach him that!

Not knowing what to do, she pulled him close and feeling his body shaking and tears on her shoulder, she patted his back awkwardly. Septimus gradually relaxed in her arms and, unexpectedly, all the self-consciousness drifted out of her and she tightened her embrace, taking in that this might be the last time she saw the boy who had sprinkled his magic all around her for the last four years…

AN: I'm sorry! This always turns out so emotional! Anyways, I'm sorry it took me so long to update but I was kept busy with my studies. :S Thanks for your reviews, as always, they are really appreciated!